Highlighting some of the lesser known, but just as important past Armenian characters in India.
Those Armenians who have some sort of connection, or maybe simply buried in Calcutta and other locations in India, I re-create their lives and put them into short stories, at least as much as I am able to.
The Armenians of India are unique and their stories need to be told. I hope this blog goes a little way to telling those stories.
Armenian graves in India www.chater-genealogy.com.

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Monday, 1 February 2016

There are
many people interested in their Indian Armenian heritage.I am often asked if there are any birth,
marriage and death records in English available relating to Armenians in India.
This post is for those currently searching, as well future researchers who are seeking
their elusive Armenian ancestors with a connection to India.

In 2005 recognising
the significance and historical importance of these hitherto publicly unseen
records, and with the blessing and consent of the Armenian Church Committee Chair,
Mrs. Sonia John, I was granted permission to photograph the whole of the early
baptism register held at the Armenian Holy Church of Nazareth, Kolkata.

The first page of the baptism register starts at 1793

This
particular set of records date from between 1793 and 1859. Written only in the Armenian
language I spent many months trying to find someone who would help with the
translation work.I finally found Dr.
Reuben Khachaturyan, he was interested in the Armenian community of India and
was actively tracing his own family connections. Although he was working in the
Yemen he still found time to help with the translations and transcriptions. I
would send him the images and he returned the results each week in an excel
document.It took just over two years to
successfully complete the translations and for me to check any queries.Once I was happy with the end result I wanted
to make sure that I was able to share this very valuable and unique information
completely free to the wider public.

I approached
the Families in British India Society
who are “a self-help organisation devoted
to members researching their British India family history and the
background against which their ancestors led their lives in India under British
rule.”

I enquired
whether they would be interested in hosting this information on their website.
They confirmed that this data would indeed prove to be a very valuable asset
for their members and visitors and were more than happy to take the newly
translated information and add it to their fast growing database.

This was the
first time that the early Armenian baptism register had been fully transcribed
and translated into English in its entirety. Reuben and I undertook this
project without any financial help or institutional or organisational
assistance or support.Over 1200 records
have subsequently been ‘unlocked’ and since their release to FIBIS, they have
helped many thousands of people around the world who previously had no chance
of being able to break down their family history brick wall.

Alternatively,
go to the main site and explore from there. www.fibis.org.

Are you
trying to locate an Armenian grave of a family member or ancestor?

You may also
find my dedicated website worth a visit. It contains images of the vast
majority of Armenian graves and tombstones in India, and it is fully searchable.
Give it a try, it’s completely free. www.chater-genealogy.com

If you have
any questions regarding your Indian Armenian family history, please use the
contact form on the right and I will do my best to try to help you.

About Me

Fascinated by Armenian family history in Asia, I have decided to share some of my research finds here. Many of the documents I post have never been seen in public and I hope you find them interesting.
My research is peppered with stories of the lost, forgotten, the ordinary and extra-ordinary, there are indigo planters, bathroom attendants, apothecaries, architects and priests, barristers and bank managers, engineers and time-keepers, doctors, farriers, teachers, mechanics, musicians, magistrates, portrait painters, and valets - they all had a life, they all have a story and I'm trying to do them all.
For Armenian graves in India and other historical postings please see my main website http://www.chater-genealogy.com